Patrice Bergeron: ‘I’m not rooting for anyone except us right now’

Every Stanley Cup playoff series got a head start on the Bruins and Red Wings. Now, on Friday night, Patrice Bergeron and the Bruins get their chance to show how ready they are after a league-best 117 points in the regular season.

“It was great to have those games and get in the mode of playoff hockey and watching it all helps to get a focus,” Bergeron said Friday morning after participating in a light optional skate before Friday’s Game 1 at TD Garden. “I was getting antsy just watching, for sure. You want to get out there, you want to get going. It’s nice that it’s finally tonight.

“I’m not rooting for anyone except us right now, so I’m just watching games and, like I said, it helps me getting focused just by watching it and being ready for tonight.”

The biggest break for the Bruins and the Red Wings is that they’ve had a full four days off since the regular season ended on Sunday.

“I think it’s good for everyone, just with the schedule we’ve had after the [Olympic] break,” Bergeron said. “It was pretty crazy so it was good everyone to get ready and now we’re looking forward to it.”

As for coming into the playoffs with the Presidents’ Trophy in tow, Bergeron said he’s not worried about the pressure of being No. 1.

“I think we high expectations of ourselves so the outside pressure has never been something that we should really worry about. It’s about us right now. It’s about making sure we only worry about what’s in this room and we know we’re a good team and have to take it a game at a time,” Bergeron said.

“First of all, there’s nothing you can control. It is what it is and that’s the schedule and you just have to go with it. I think we’ve done that. We’ve had three days of practice to get ready for the Red Wings and I think that’s a good thing. It’s starts tonight and that’s all we can really focus on.”

During the series, Bergeron will be often matched up against veteran Red Wings center Pavel Datsyuk. It’s a matchup everyone has their eyes on.

“It’s always a great challenge,” Bergeron said. “He’s a terrific player and he’s won before. He’s really a great player, tough to play against. It’s a great challenge for everyone.”